


Glass Ornaments

by 4minutesleft



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age II, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Future, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, POV First Person, Sassy, introductions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-24
Updated: 2016-03-24
Packaged: 2018-05-28 18:03:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6339733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/4minutesleft/pseuds/4minutesleft
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>… oh, and I’m a twenty-two-year-old virgin. </p><p>Evelyn has had the perfect university experience. Away from her religious family, made some amazing friends, met people who love her dorky personality, but there's still one thing that she still needs to do, fall in love. With her parents giving her an ultimatum, Evelyn has to find love by the end of the year or end up as a Vael (that's something she does not want to do).</p><p>---</p><p>Modern AU FF, will loosely follow some events with modern twists. Fluff, smut, angst and relationships to come. Oh and lots of Dorian to come too.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Glass Ornaments

Introductions are always the hardest part, but let’s just get this over and done with.

My name is Evelyn Trevelyan, and I am a senior at the University of Orlais… oh, and I’m a twenty-two-year-old virgin. I know it’s an odd tagline for an introduction. I know, don’t worry. I don’t usually tack it on the end of my introductions. I mean, could you imagine? I’m just standing at a bar, getting hit on by the most gorgeous guy imaginable and then I end one of my sentences with that. That would just kill the conversation. He would probably pretend to check his phone or something and then make up an extremely transparent excuse before he would get up to leave. I’d act all sympathetic, tell him to text me later and then meander on home, read a few chapters of a book and drift off to sleep. Then I’d probably wake up at three in the morning realising that he had blown me off before I’d howl loudly into my pillow out of frustration. Or embarrassment. Probably both. _Definitely_ both.

I’m rambling again. Sorry, I do that a lot, but you’ll get used to it.

Okay, it’s time for the definitive statement that I should have just told you from the beginning: **This year, I will fall in love and lose my virginity to the man of my dreams.**

I can hear the the jingling of the chains on chastity belts and see the questions forming on your lips from here so I’m just going to answer them before you say anything.

No, I’m not hideous. I’m what guys would call _cute._ Not _sexy_ , not _hot_ , just _cute_ and I like that. I think. I have hips and a bit of a tummy, sure, but I also have _amazing eyes_ , an _infectious laugh_ , and _a great butt._ Hey, I’ve never said that about me. I’ve just heard guys tell me that in the past. Also, no, I’m not weird, despite all the evidence that I’ve just presented to you. You’ll just have to trust me on that one for now.

Am I scared of sex? Well kind of, but that’s because the longer I put it off, the more unlikely it seems that I’ll actually have it. I’ve been on a few dates, kissed a handful of men and had my heart broken once, but that’s not really why I’m scared of sex. The reason I’m scared of it is because every time I get older and put it off, the more I get freaked out about it. It seems like a mountain I should have already conquered while on my way to womanhood, but it’s still just looming over me. It just makes me all itchy and restless to think about it, and I don’t mean restless in the way of some like, big-breasted romance novel tramp kind of way. Nothing heaves and there’s no sensual spasms, and my heavy breathing is _so_ not sexy. We’re talking panic attacks and wheezing here. So not attractive. It’s why I need to find the perfect man to lose it to. If the guy is right, the time will be right and _everything_ will be right.

No, I’m not waiting for marriage due to religious reasons; however, my parents are thrilled that it appears that way. My parents are _quite_ religious (that’s a bit of an understatement but I don’t want them to be perceived as some kind of religious nut-jobs) so that meant a rather controlled upbringing of private schools and a lot of mind-numbingly dull extracurricular activities to “keep my body and mind healthy” as my mother so graciously put it. So I can say the Chant of Light backwards, but I can’t do anything useful, like my taxes or apply for a rental without an army helping me. Or talk to guys without acting like a dork.

Also, I should have mentioned that they’re Ostwick nobility, so that meant a lot of lessons on “proper” etiquette when I was younger. Ironically, I found out that Free Marches etiquette means nothing in Orlais, there’s a whole different set of rules here. Like did you know you have to eat different meals with certain forks otherwise it’s considered rude? Who needs five forks to eat a meal? I mean, not that I haven’t been on dates with too many nobles here. They’re just as bad, if not worse than the Free Marcher ones.

Oh, I’m rambling again, aren’t I?

Back to my original point, what did the etiquette lessons teach me about men? They taught me how to smile meekly and accept a life of being an ornament on man’s arm. That is so not me.

Let me tell you a story about noble men. **No.** That tends to be the extent of their answers to my questions anyway. Like to have fun at no one’s expense? No. Want to try something different? No. Want to try to woo me with something apart from money? No. Have I ever been interested in one? You guessed it, no.

I have never done anything with a noble man that has been remotely enjoyable. A nice, quiet and intimate date with a Free Marcher or Orlesian of noble blood is completely out of the question. Nobles would rather go to parties where everyone tries to one up each-others social status and wealth by name dropping, holiday destination dropping, label dropping and even income dropping if the discussions got heated. Unfortunately they don’t drop dead like I felt like doing from boredom listening to it all, so I’d have to grin and bear it. Then I would lie to my parents saying that I had a great time and that the suitor of the month could be the one. Perhaps if I had been honest from the beginning, none of this would be happening right now.

Why did I date someone who wasn’t a noble? You should try asking my parents what they think of Free Marchers who aren’t nobles. Just try it. I’ll be at your funeral, reading the inscription on your grave: _Hear lies you, died of boredom due to listening to the ten thousand reasons why Evelyn Trevelyan, only daughter of the House Trevelyan cannot marry into common blood._

Don’t get me wrong, I love my parents, I really do, but the life they lead and the life they had planned for me is just not something I want. It’s the reason why I fled for Orlais as soon as I graduated High School. I won an academic scholarship in my final year of High School, packed my bags the day after graduation, said my goodbyes and left.

When I left the Free Marches, I thought that the phrase: “The grass is always greener on the other side” would ring true for me. I thought I’d meet the love of my life, we’d get married and live happily ever after in a beautiful, foreign and interesting city. Unfortunately, when you put one slightly (okay quite) shy and geeky girl in a foreign city and mix in the fact that I knew no one, well it didn’t really go too well for me to begin with. Now it’s a different story, but back then it wasn’t exactly a lot of fun.

What’s the big deal? The reason why this is a big deal is because my parents _think_ they have found the perfect man for me, and by that, they’ve found the worst thing possible for me. He’s some noble from Starkhaven with money, a lot of land and an unnatural amount of devotion to the Maker. He was some Chantry brother descended from a long line of nobility too. They’ve given me an ultimatum: either I bring home an acceptable man who loves me deeply by the time I graduate and begin my life as a woman, or they will take over my love life for me. I’ve never understood why Free Marchers are so obsessed with controlling their children’s love life, but tradition is a big thing for my family and I can’t keep running from them forever. Not even going to the other side of Thedas has helped me escape them.  

As well, I can’t very well go into the next phase of adulthood with my virginity and love life not accounted for. Especially with that ultimatum looming over me. How can I honestly call myself a woman if I still cringe when at the thought that I’m a twenty-two-year old virgin who has never known true love or true intimacy? It’s just embarrassing and I refuse to spend the rest of my life as some arm piece for a stuffy noble like they want me to.

So it’s happening. I don’t know when - or who the love of my life is - but since I’m not dating anyone or interested in anyone at the moment, the countdown is on to finding them. Graduation day, I will walk up to receive my diploma, with the love of my life looking up at me proudly. I’ve got ten months, nine days, six minutes and three seconds. The countdown is on.


End file.
